Radio telephone arrangement with two memory modules and prioritization of their use

ABSTRACT

A radio telephone arrangement comprises two or more card readers ( 10,11,13 ) for accommodating a corresponding number of memory cards (SIM 1,  SIM 2,  SIM 3 ) e.g. in the form of subscriber identity modules (SIMs). The various.card readers may be designed to accept memory cards having different physical formats. The telephone is adapted to use the information from one of the memory cards (to the exclusion of the other memory cards) in accordance with a predetermined priority allocation. The prioritization may be re-set automatically if a card or card reader is removed or inserted. Preferably the user may also modify the priorities, e.g. by menu selection.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This is a continuing application of U.S. patent application Ser. No.08/099,709 filed Jul. 29, 1993, U.S. Pat. No. 6,223,052.

This invention relates to a radio arrangement and, more particularly, toa radio arrangement including means for removably receiving a memorymodule for storing information.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is known in the field of cellular radio telephones, for example, touse a memory module such as a data card which may be removably insertedinto the telephone. Data, such as identity information, is read from theinserted card and used in the subsequent operation of the telephone. Byway of example European Patent Application EP-A-0,369,110 discloses amobile radio telephone having a handset into which a data card storingsubscriber-related information is insertable for transferringinformation from the data card to the working memory of the telephone.

The data card may be, for example, a so-called “smart-card” which issimilar in size to a conventional plastic credit card and which includesa memory implemented as an integrated circuit device, commonly referredto as a “chip”, in which information is stored. For this reason suchcards are also often known as “chip cards”.

In addition to subscriber identity information, such as the subscribertelephone number, and personal identification number (PIN), the smartcard may store for example, call charge information (i.e. a chargemeter), a telephone number index, or false PIN entries. As memorycapacity expands in smaller chip sizes, more applications can beimplemented on one smart card. Accordingly, it is envisaged that infuture multipurpose smart cards will cover an even wider range ofapplications than personal identification and datastorage services.

Indeed, in modern telecommunication systems, the applications for smartcards is expanding. One such application in this field is the so-calledsubscriber identity module (SIM) proposed for the pan-European digitalcellular radio telephone system known as GSM (Group Spéciale Mobile).For more information about the SIM proposed for GSM, reference isinvited to the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI)Recommendation GSM 11.11 which describes the technical SIMspecifications and Recommendation GSM 02.17 for the functionalcharacteristics of the SIM.

There are currently two different mechanical standards proposed for theGSM SIM card and it is probable that a third will evolve. Thefunctionality of the SIM is the same for all sizes, it is essentiallythat the physical dimensions are different. At present the two standardsare (a) a credit card size SIM, and (b) a plug-in SIM about 20 mm×25 mm.The proposed third standard is likely to be a mid-sized SIM about halfthe size of a regular credit card. The rationale behind the differentsizes is that the credit card size is perceived as a convenient size forthe user from a practical standpoint. However, the credit card size isrelatively large, and smaller card sizes are needed as miniaturizationcontinues to drive down the overall size of the terminal (i.e. the radiotelephone unit itself). The plug-in SIM is intended to besemi-permanently installed in the cellular telephone.

In future it is envisaged that compatibility problems are likely toarise when several different sizes of SIM are in wide use, because theSIM receiving device in a particular terminal will generally be designedto accept only one SIM type.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention there is provided a radio arrangementincluding first receiving means for removably receiving a first memorymodule for storing information, second receiving means for removablyreceiving a second memory module for storing information, andinformation processing means adapted to use preferentially theinformation from one of the memory modules in accordance with apredetermined prioritization of said first and second receiving means.

As used in the present context, the term “memory module” includes a datacard (such as a smart card (IC card) or a magnetic card), and otherforms of package enclosing or carrying a memory device. The data cardmay be a passive memory card, i.e. essentially a read only memory (ROM),or an active processor card, i.e. capable of processing informationinternally within the card.

A radio arrangement in accordance with the invention has the advantageof being able to accept two or more different memory modules, but in adiscriminatory fashion so that if two (or more) memory modules arepresent simultaneously it will be determined automatically which onewill be used in preference to the other(s). Hence, the two data modulesmay contain different, possibly conflicting, items of data, but of thesame data type, and the radio arrangement in accordance with theinvention will have the capacity to automatically select one of the dataitems in preference to the other, so avoiding the conflict. For example,one memory module may have a first identity number (e.g. a subscribernumber) assigned to it, and another memory module may have a secondidentity number assigned to it. When both modules are usedsimultaneously, i.e. in the respective receiving means, the radioarrangement in accordance with the invention will be operable with onlyone of the identity numbers, since the information processing means willuse preferentially the information from that memory module which ispresent in the receiving means assigned the highest priority.

Moreover, the first receiving means may be capable of accepting a firsttype of memory module (i.e. a first size, shape or standard), while thesecond receiving means may accept a second type of memory module (i.e asecond size, shape or standard). Thus a radio arrangement in accordancewith the invention may be compatible with different memory module types,which is particularly beneficial when there is more than one standardmodule available for the same application, as in the case of the GSM SIMcard mentioned above.

The information processing means and the first receiving means may beprovided in the same housing, e.g. the transceiver housing.Alternatively, the first receiving means may be provided in a separatehousing, e.g. in a handset, or in a cradle housing on which the handsetis stored when not in use. In this latter case a coupling is provided toenable information to be transferred between the first memory module(when present in the first receiving means) and the informationprocessing means.

The second receiving means may also be present in a separate, e.g. adedicated, housing, and in this case a coupling is provided to enableinformation to be transferred between the second memory module (whenpresent in the second receiving means) and the information processingmeans.

In one particular embodiment the first receiving means may be associatedwith a first radio, and the second receiving means may be associatedwith a second, independent radio. It is noted here that European patentEP-B-0,378,450 and European patent application EP-A-0,310,876 disclosethat two radio telephones maybe interconnected such that the subscribernumber of one is transferred to the other for subsequent communication.In that case, however, the subscriber numbers are stored in a respectivenumber assignment module (NAM) internally within each radio, and theNAMs are not designed to be removable.

In a preferred embodiment the predetermined prioritization of the firstand second receiving means may be modified according to circumstances.In one case the prioritization may be modified automatically dependingon the condition of the radio. For example, if two receiving means arepresent the initial prioritization may be that the first receiving meanstakes priority over the second. However, if a third receiving means isadded, the prioritization may be modified so that the third receivingmeans takes the highest priority. In a second case the prioritizationmay be modified manually by the user, e.g. by menu selection using theuser interface (i.e. keypad and display) of the radio.

Suitably, means are provided for indicating which receiving meanscontains a memory module whose information is being used by theinformation processing means. This indication may be given as a messageon the display of the radio. Alternatively each of the receiving meansmay be provided with a respective visual display element, e.g. a lightsource, which is illuminated to indicate which memory module iscurrently in use.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

An embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example,with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates schematically a radio telephone arrangement inaccordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of an alternate embodiment of theinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The radio arrangement shown in FIG. 1 comprises a mobile cellular radiotelephone for use on the GSM network, which includes a transceiverhousing 2 and a handset 3 removably mounted on a cradle 4. The handset 3is connected to the cradle 4 by a curly cord, in a conventional manner.Suitably the transceiver housing is mounted in the boot (trunk) of avehicle and the handset and cradle are mounted in the interior passengercompartment.

The housing 2 encloses a transceiver 5 connected to an external antenna6 and coupled to an internal microprocessor 7. The transceiver 5 andmicroprocessor 7 are coupled to the handset 3 via the cradle 4, asshown. The program instructions for operating the telephone are storedin a memory device 8, e.g. a ROM,RAM or EEPROM, coupled to themicroprocessor 7.

Subscriber related data (e.g. subscriber number, system ID, systemchannel scan data and serial number) is stored in a first SIM 9 (SIM1)which can be removably inserted in the housing 2. In this embodiment theSIM 9 is of the smaller plug-in type specified as a GSM standard. Anarea 11 in the housing is reserved for receiving the SIM 9 and isdesigned so that the SIM 9 can be plugged in or removed in a relativelystraightforward manner. The area 11 may be in the form of a recess orcompartment. The SIM 9 may also contain other information orapplications, e.g. repertory dialing information, charge meterinformation, function control information, an authentication algorithmetc. It is noted here that the GSM SIM card is not a passive memorycard, but a so-called processor card which includes not only a memory,but a facility for internally processing information, as is well knownin the art. The data stored in the SIM is used by the microprocessor 7to enable the telephone to communicate on the GSM network. Other datastored on the SIM is used by the microprocessor e.g. to control, modify,or monitor the operation of the telephone in conventional manner. Alight emitting diode (LED) 18 located on the cradle 4 is illuminated toindicate when the microprocessor 7 is using information from SIM1. TheLED indicator may alternatively be located on the handset 3 or housing2.

It is not necessary for the SIM1 to be accommodated in the housing 2. Itmay alternatively be accommodated in the cradle 4, in the handset 4, orin a separate, external card reader analogous to the independent cardreader 10 described below.

A second SIM card 12 (SIM2) may be inserted into a separate card readingdevice 10. SIM2 contains a different set of data to SIM1 and may be of adifferent type to SIM1. In the present embodiment the SIM card 12 is thelarger credit card size specified as a GSM standard. The card reader 10may be implemented in accordance with the aforementioned European patentapplication EP-A-0,494,503 to which reference is again invited. Othervery suitable forms of card reader for this purpose are disclosed inEuropean patent application EP-A-0,351,103 and European patentEP-B-0,325,458 to which reference is also invited.

The external card reader 10 is coupled to the microprocessor 7 in thetransceiver housing 2 via a data bus 15 and a conventional protocol maybe used for transferring data from the second SIM card 12 to themicroprocessor 7. A light emitting diode (LED) 19 on the card reader 10is illuminated to indicate when the microprocessor 7 is usinginformation from SIM2.

In the present arrangement a facility is also provided for coupling anindependent portable radio telephone 20 to the mobile telephone 1, suchthat when the portable is connected the mobile may adopt data from theportable. To this end a holder 13 is provided for receiving the portabletelephone 20. The holder 13 may be mounted, for example, in a convenientlocation in the passenger compartment of the vehicle. The portabletelephone 20 is provided with a third SIM card 14 (SIM3) containing afurther set of data.

The holder 13 is coupled to the microprocessor 7 in the transceiverhousing 2 via a data bus 16 and a conventional protocol may be used fortransferring data from the third SIM card 14 in the portable telephone.LED 17 on the holder 13 is illuminated to indicate when themicroprocessor 7 is using information from SIM3.

In use, the microprocessor 7 periodically monitors which of the SIMcards SIM1, SIM2, SIM3 are present. If only one SIM card is present thenthe microprocessor will use the data from that particular SIM card forthe operation of the mobile telephone. If all of the card readers arefound to be empty, i.e no SIM cards are present, the telephone will notoperate except, perhaps, for emergency service calls.

On the other hand if two or more SIM cards are found to be presentsimultaneously, the microprocessor 7 will use data from one of the cardsonly in accordance with a predetermined priority sequence for thevarious card readers. The priority list is stored, for example, in thememory 8. Thus in the present case, the default prioritization, indescending order of priority is;

1. Portable Telephone Holder (13) = SIM3 2. External Card Reader (10) =SIM2 3. Internal Card Reader (11) = SIM1

Hence, if a portable telephone 20 is present in the holder 13 the mobiletelephone will become operable with the data from SIM3 in the portabletelephone 20. If there is no portable telephone in the holder 13, but aSIM card 12 (SIM2) is present in the external card reader 10, the mobiletelephone will become operable with the data from SIM2 in the cardreader 10. If there is neither a portable telephone in the holder 13,nor a SIM card in the external reader 10, but a SIM card 9 (SIM1) ispresent in the housing 2, the mobile telephone will be operable with thedata from SIM1.

In addition to the periodic monitoring of which SIM cards are present,the system automatically checks the situation and re-prioritizeswhenever a SIM card is inserted or removed, or whenever the externalcard reader 10, or the telephone holder 13 are connected to ordisconnected from the mobile telephone. However, if a new SIM card isinserted during a call, any new prioritization will not become effectiveuntil the current call is terminated.

The prioritization sequence may be fixed. However, it is preferable ifthe priority can be varied by the user. Suitably this may be achieved bymenu selection with the aid of the user interface on the mobile. Morespecifically, by depressing the keys on the mobilehandset 3 the user mayenter a menu mode in which the option becomes available to reset thepriority levels. To this end, one of the keys on the handset 3 mayinclude a menu or function key, suitably labeled, as is usual in suchtelephones. Depression of this key permits a variety of pre-set men us,the related instructions of which may be stored in the memory 8, to beviewed on a display and selectively enabled. The various menus may beselected by pressing appropriate keys on the keypad after pressing themenu key. The relevant menu is shown to the user in words orabbreviations on the display. For example, it is known that the user mayselect the ring tone by appropriate menu selection. More sophisticatedoptions may also be available via the menu facility.

In this embodiment a special menu is provided to permit manualmodification of the card reader priorities. For example the name of thedifferent card receiving devices may be shown on the display and theuser may choose the relative priority levels by appropriately pressingkeys on the keypad.

So, for example, the display may first show “PORTABLE”, in response towhich the user may press the key “2”. The display may then shown“EXTERNAL SIM”, in response to which the user presses the key “1”.

Finally the display shows “INTERNAL SIM”, and the user presses “3”. Thenew priority sequence is thus set as follows, in descending order:

1. External Card Reader (10) = SIM2 2. Portable Telephone Holder (13) =SIM3 3. Internal Card Reader (11) = SIM1

It may be possible to set two card readers with the same priority level.However, in this case, if SIM cards are found to be present in bothdevices having the equivalent priority level, a message will bedisplayed indicating to the user that an error has occurred or thatthere are conflicting priorities, and inviting the user to resolve theconflict by manually selecting which card should take precedence.

In view of the foregoing description it will be evident to a personskilled in the art that various modifications may be made within thescope of the present invention. For example, the facility for couplingan independent portable telephone may be dispensed with. Moreover, the“external” card reader 10 described above may alternatively beintegrated with the mobile telephone apparatus as shown in the alternateembodiment of FIG. 2, and may for example be incorporated in the cradle4 or in the handset 3. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 the telephone1′ has a housing 2′ with the two memory card readers 10′ and 11 for thetwo memory modules 9, 12′. As noted above, the first memory module 9 canbe a plug-in SIM. The second memory module 12′ can be different size,such as a credit card size and can have the different information ordata as noted above, such as charge information for financial changes ora personal identification number. On the other hand the “external” cardreader may be associated with other apparatus such as a data terminal ora personal computer. Furthermore, the “internal” card reader 11described above need not be enclosed within the main transceiver housing2, but may instead be implemented externally in the same manner as theexternal card reader 10. Also, some or all of the card readers may becapable of accepting SIM cards of the same type, standard or format.Finally, it is noted that a radio arrangement in accordance with theinvention may be used not only with two or three card readers but withany higher number of card readers capable of accepting a correspondingnumber of SIM cards.

What we claim is:
 1. A radio arrangement comprising: a first memorymodule receiving unit; a first memory module connected to the firstmemory module receiving unit; a processor operably connected to thefirst receiving unit; a first connector connected to the processor forconnecting a second memory module in a second memory module receivingunit to the processor, wherein the processor is adapted to alternativelyuse data in the first memory module or data in the second memory module,when the second memory module receiving unit is connected to theprocessor, based upon a priority sequence processed by the processor. 2.A radio arrangement as in claim 1 further comprising a second connectorconnected to the processor for connecting a third memory module in athird memory module receiving unit to the processor.
 3. A radioarrangement as in claim 1 wherein the second memory module is removablyconnected to the first memory module receiving unit.
 4. A radioarrangement as in claim 1 wherein the processor is adapted to change thepriority sequence.
 5. A radio arrangement as in claim 1 wherein thepriority sequence is configured to switch use of data by the processoramong at least three memory modules.
 6. A radio arrangement in claim 1further comprising the second memory module receiving unit beingconnected to the connector, and wherein the first and second memorymodule receiving units have receiving areas for their respective firstand second memory modules which have respective different physicalsizes.
 7. A radio arrangement as in claim 6 wherein the second memorymodule is removable mounted in the second memory module receiving unit.8. A radio telephone system comprising: a first unit having a firsthousing, a processor connected to the first housing, and a first memorymodule removably connected to the first housing; and a second unithaving a second housing and a second memory module connected to thesecond housing, the second memory module being operably connectable tothe processor, wherein the processor comprises prioritizaitonprogramming to alternatively select either the first memory module orthe second memory module, based upon occurrence of a predeterminedprioritization event signaled to the processor, for operational use ofdata in the selected memory module by the processor.
 9. A radiotelephone system as in claim 8 wherein the predetermined prioritizationevent is connection of the second unit to the processor.
 10. A radiotelephone system as in claim 8 wherein the predetermined prioritizationevent is connection of the second memory module to the processor.
 11. Aradio telephone system as in claim 8 wherein the second memory module isremovably connected to the second housing.
 12. A radio telephone systemas in claim 8 further comprising a third unit having a third housing anda third memory module connected to the third housing, the third memorymodule being operably connectable to the processor, wherein theprioritization programming is adapted to alternatively select among thefirst memory module or the second memory module or the third memorymodule, based upon occurrence of the predetermined prioritization event,for operational use of data in the selected memory module by theprocessor.
 13. A radio telephone system as in claim 8 wherein the firstand second memory modules have different physical sizes.
 14. A radiotelephone system as in claim 8 wherein the system is adapted toreprogram the prioritization programming.
 15. A method of using data inmemory modules in a radio communication system comprising steps of:removably connecting a first memory module to a processor in a radiocommunication unit; connecting a second memory module to the processor;and alternatively selecting by the processor, based upon a predeterminedprioritization and occurrence of a predetermined prioritization eventsignaled to the processor, either the first memory module or the secondmemory module for use by the processor of data in the selected memorymodule.
 16. A method as in claim 15 wherein the step of connecting thesecond memory module removably connects the second memory module to theprocessor.
 17. A method as in claim 15 wherein the step of connectingthe second memory module comprises connecting a second memory moduleunit to a connector on a housing which houses the processor.
 18. Amethod as in claim 17 wherein the predetermined prioritization eventcomprises connection of the second memory module unit to the connector.